How did you find the job at the Salvation Army?

I just got lucky. I applied to a million places. And I just got lucky. I found my dream job, right away. Which is crazy. Not a lot of people can say that. Most of my friends are living in their parents’ house or basement right now.

What do you do at the Salvation Army?

My position is the family services director. Mainly I am the director of the two food pantries that we have. We have one here on Sixth Avenue, and we also have one on the East Side. I kind of just oversee what’s going on in both places. Mainly I just help families. I became interested in families in poverty in school. I originally went to school for education, and I realized that the best way to help a child is through their family.

What did you do at DHS, and how has that experience helped you in this job?

I enjoyed my time at DHS, but I originally went in thinking that I would work for DHS, but I felt that I wasn’t able to help people in the way I wanted to help them through that job. So I knew that when I started applying for jobs, I was only going to take something that would allow me to connect on a more personal level with my clients. And this helps that a lot; it fits that position more than DHS did. But it was a great experience. It kind of helps to have an “in” at DHS, because most of our clients are served by them also. So if they have questions about the DHS process, I know it and can help them answer any questions. It was a good experience, but I love it here.

What are some of the challenges that come with this position?

So far, some of the challenges have been, of course, trying to please all our funders. In a nonprofit, you have to keep the money flowing, and to do that, you have to meet a lot of requirements, keep a lot of statistics on whom you’re serving, how often you’re serving them, where they live, just tons of information. Also transitioning from college into a leadership-type position is a little daunting at first, but I think I’m doing a pretty good job.

What have you done since you have been on the job?

I’ve already implemented a new intake procedure for financial assistance in August, and I think everyone is really excited. Right now, we have kind of a chaotic intake system where clients wait outside, and sometimes clients show up at 4 a.m. to get financial assistance, and we only help around six a day, and there’s usually always more than six out there. Unfortunately, we just don’t have the funding to help everyone, and we don’t have the manpower. So we’re going to have people call in instead of wait outside. We’re going to schedule appointments for an entire week, instead of just making appointments for a day. So no one will have to wait outside; they’ll just have to be by a phone at 8 a.m. on Friday mornings to give us a call and say they need help with their financials, and we’ll try to get them in if they’re one of the first 30 callers.

Since you landed a job right out of college, what advice would you have for young professionals or people just getting out of college?

I would say the key is to study hard, obviously, go to class, listen to your professors. They have advice to give, and they are good connections. They can give you advice on who you are or what to look for. Do the internships. Basically, start early. I started in January, and I applied for a job every single day, and I got a job the week of graduation. It’s not that I got lucky; I just sent out a lot of cover letters, a lot of resumes. Just do your research. When you go into interviews, know whom you’re talking to, what you’re applying for. Tweak your resume every time.

What do you like to do aside from work?

Right now, I just moved to Des Moines, so I’m really liking going to the Farmers Market and Gray’s Lake and exploring the city. Other than that, I love concerts and all the regular 20-something type of stuff.